FLEECE FAITH?

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Most of us have heard about a method that Christians sometimes use to establish the will of God regarding a decision that they have to make. This method is usually resorted to when there is confusion about what to do that would coincide with God’s will. It’s called, “Laying out a fleece.” In this process we present before our Lord a manner in which He can give us a sign as to how we can make a decision that can reflect His specific will for us. This idea of testing for God’s input comes from a scripture in the book of Judges. We read in the sixth chapter an account of a very serious confrontation between a coalition of Midianites and Amalekites who wish to do battle against Israel. Gideon is the commander in chief of Israel at this time and he is concerned about the upcoming battle. It did not look good for Israel but Gideon had faith in God, or should I say he had weak faith in God? Let’s read the account of his handling of the situation before the battle.

 

Judges 6:36-7:1

“Gideon said to God, ‘If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised—look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.’ And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew — a bowlful of water. Then Gideon said to God, ‘Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make the fleece dry and the ground covered with dew.’ That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.”

 

What Gideon wished in this situation was to have some divine security bestowed upon him that Israel would be the victor over her enemies. I can’t blame Gideon for his weak faith. I might have done exactly the same thing under the stress of the moment. But I am sure this is not a model of how we are to make decisions as Christians, nor do I think it is a good witness of the type of faith that God desires us to have.

 

I believe the truth of the matter is that Gideon was weak in his faith and resorted to seeking miraculous proofs to establish the reliability of God’s power and character. He looked at his enemy rather than at God’s provision in the past and wondered what the outcome of the battle would be. Even though he knew God was powerful enough to deliver Israel, doubt still plagued his thoughts. He resorted to this “fleece” method of verification of God’s will and power not only once, but twice. The first request was to have the fleece be wet while the ground around it would be dry. God graciously granted his request and verified that Israel would be the victor. Possibly when this request was granted Gideon rethought what he had asked. It would be only natural for a fleece to gather morning dew more than the surrounding ground. Gideon therefore began to doubt the answer he had received and did not trust that God had adequately answered. So Gideon requested yet another verification; that of having the ground wet and the fleece dry. God again in His patient kindness granted this request as well. This seemed to comfort Gideon and he was able to go into battle with confidence. One might ask, was his confidence in God or in the miraculous signs of the fleece God had graciously provided?

 

When we read such an account we must ask ourselves the question, is it wise for us as Christians to put such a method in practice when attempting to discern God’s will for decisions we make. The situation Gideon faced shows us even great men and women of God will have weak moments of faith. While Gideon’s action regarding the fleece explains how God will respond “sometimes” to someone weak in faith, I doubt it should be a model by which we make decisions on a regular basis. I believe it is an exception to the rule. We need to remember first and foremost, God desires us to have faith in Him, not in tests for His provision and character. The Old Testament is full of great men and women of God who never resorted to the “fleece” method of testing for God’s will. Even Gideon resorted to this sort of process only in this one instance.

 

The New Testament gives us a definition of what true faith in God is all about in Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” I believe strong faith in God is when we are sure of His character, power, provision and purity. Faith is trusting in the God we cannot see, but who lives within us as Christians through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit given to us when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Master. Godly faith is based on the power, reliability and truth of the object of our faith. In our lives as followers of Christ, the object of our faith is our Triune God; Father, Son and Spirit.

 

We can all relate to Gideon in his predicament. We often fail to trust God in the storms of life we face. When we feel weak in our faith and grasp for ways we can make decisions that are pleasing to God, we can be tempted to throw out a “fleece” not because we are mature in our faith, but because we have either not grown spiritually, failed to listen properly for God’s guidance through the wise counsel of others and the Holy Spirit within us or we have forgotten the importance of His Holy written Word which has been given to guide us.

 

James 1:5-8 tells us how to find wisdom for making decisions, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.” So rather than throwing out a “fleece” we should pursue three ways of seeking answers for our dilemma.

 

First ask God through prayer to give you wisdom in your decision-making. Secondly read scripture and pray for the Holy Spirit to help you see if your answers can be found in the Holy Word. Thirdly seek wise counsel from mature followers of Christ. Doing all this, there is one more thing you should do. You must patiently wait for God’s answer. This requires patience and trust in God’s character and provision. Even if you receive no verifiable answer from the Lord when you would like, you actually have received guidance from God already. That is; to continue to wait and seek solace in the ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life during this time of waiting. God’s intention may be to develop your patience. He may desire to show you aspects of your faith that need to be refined and matured that can only happen with a delayed answer to your situation or problem.

 

But what if you have to make a decision and circumstances do not permit a delay in the decision. In these instances, you use the insight you have gained from scripture, perceptions you have acquired from persistent prayer and the wise counsel you have received from others who are more mature in the faith; and make a decision. Does this guarantee your decision will be a good one? No. But God can still work in your situation. He knows better than you that, in this instance, you had to make the best decision you could and He will continue to work with you in the results of your decision.

 

If you are able to delay your decision and wait for a more clear response from God, He will honor your patience. During your waiting, continue to remind yourself that even His silence on matters of importance can cause you to acquire a wealth of wisdom as to how to make a decision. It builds your faith in God as you die to your urges to rush ahead of God. Continue to remind yourself that many times God’s silence is a request by Him to wait on Him and the best answer to your situation. The question is can we patiently wait and listen for Him to respond? Are we willing to wait for His answer or are we impatient? Do we accept the waiting as a godly process He wishes us to go through or do we resort to throwing out a “fleece” in the hopes we can obtain the answer we desire? Do we desire to throw out a “fleece” because we either lack faith or refuse to do the “spiritual work” necessary to wait for an answer from our Lord?

 

As I mentioned previously one way we develop faith that will help us trust in God’s guidance is to read, study and meditate on God’s Word on a regular basis. Romans 10:17 says, “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” There is a plethora of wisdom and knowledge contained in the Bible. There are examples within God’s Holy Book of mistakes people have made that we can learn from. There are situations men and women have faced that give us clues on how to make decisions pleasing to God. We see examples of answers to prayers that have been granted which will give us help in how we pray to the Lord for difficult situations in our own lives. The question is, are we willing to dig the gold out of the depths of scripture so we might make proper decisions in accordance with God’s will? Do we consume, on a daily basis, the spiritual food contained in the Bible so that we can nourish our faith, that it might grow strong and robust. Such faith grounded on the never-changing Word of God will guide us wisely in all that we do. I would venture to say that throwing out a “fleece” is the easy way out and could lead to deception if we misinterpret the answer.

 

Another crucial source of help in such situations is to remember to seek the Holy Spirit for input on your dilemma. Often we forget to listen for His advice. Two parallel passages give us insight into how to know His advice and counsel.

 

Colossians 3:16

“Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

 

Ephesians 5:18-20

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;”

 

We see here that as a follower of Christ we are to let Holy Scripture dwell in us, in our hearts and mind, RICHLY! And that we are to be filled to capacity with the Holy Spirit. These two (the Word and the Spirit) are intimately related. The Holy Spirit will help us understand and comprehend what we read in scripture for the Word is spiritual appraised and understood (1 Corinthians 2:14-15).

 

Galatians 5:25 tells us, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” We walk by the Spirit when we listen for Him to speak to us through the scripture we read and taken to heart.

 

John 14:26 informs us that the Spirit of God who lives within us teaches us all spiritual things. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

 

So you can see that as we let God’s Word dwell in our hearts and minds while at the same time allowing the Holy Spirit to fill us with His presence we can walk by His direction as He teaches us God’s Word. The follower of Christ who seeks to live in this way, will be able to discern what God’s will is and this may at times include knowing that he or she must wait for an answer.

 

If we fail to live in this fashion we will be plagued by doubts. The reasons for our doubts and weakness can be many, but we cannot blame our God who is always willing to guide us through His Word and His Spirit. He may at times, as with Gideon, respond to our “fleece” methods of procuring an answer if that is what is necessary at the moment. But I would encourage you to seek more responsible methods of seeking God’s will for your life rather than throwing out a “fleece.”

 

God desires to have a relationship with you and me. As this relationship develops we grow more and more intimate with Him. His Spirit that lives within us as Christians desires to guide, instruct and tutor us in the ways of our Master. As we grow in our relationship with our Lord we grow in faith as well. As we pray, study God’s Word, fellowship with other believers and minister to all those around us we gain a wealth of spiritual nourishment for our faith. This faith, as it grows, enables us to trust in God in mighty ways. We become more instinctive in what God wishes us to do and how we are to do it. We take on the mind of Christ and are not only led by the Spirit we are filled with Him as well. Such responsible growth gives us the wisdom and knowledge to make decisions based on faith rather than a “fleece.” To be close to Christ in heart, mind and soul is our goal as His servants and such closeness brings a glimpse of who God truly is, a pure, holy, powerful, loving and sensitive Father ever willing to let us know His will.

 

Matthew 17:20

“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.’”